Vending apparatus.



H. J. POTTER.

I VENDING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 24, 1909.

925,595. Patented June22, 1909.

7 T 3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

mtented. June '22, 1909.

APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 24, mos.

H. J. POTTER.

VENDING lll l b L Patented June 22, 1909.

H. J. POTTER.

VENDING APPARATUS.

E MW APPLICATION FILED MAE-24,1909.

IIIILI lxllll FIII I HARRY I. POTTER, OF WATERTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS.

VENDING arenas-nus.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 22, 1909.

Application filed-March 24, 1909. gerial No. 485,533.

tertown, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented new and useful Vending Apparatus, of which the following isspecification This invention relates to apparatus for dispensing flatarticles, and more especially to vending machines in which. the articledelivered is inclosed in an envelop or otherwise formed into a packagepresenting an irregular feeding surface.

As its principal objects the invention provides simple means to efi'ectcertain delivery MIC to guard the articles in the machine againstremoval, unless it is operated in a proper mann ,r.

Other obiects and thcmanner in which all are attained will hereinafter,appear.

In the annexed drawings, forming a part of this specification: Figure 1is a side elevation oi one embodiment of my invention, the upper portionof the ackage-recciver being broken away; F 2 is a partial verticalsection on the line 2-2 of l* ig. 1; Fig. 3 is full vertical section onthe line 3-3 of Fig. 2, showing the elements of the apparawe in theirnormal position; Fig. i is a sectional detail illustrating the feedingelements after the advance of package has he un; Fig. 5 is a viewsimilar to Fig. 3 with the elements in the position assumed at thecompletion of the primary feed; Fig, 6 is a bottom plan vlew of therecmrccatory delivery'means; and Figs. 7 and 8 are details inperspectiveof cooperating members of the coin-controlled mechanism.

Similar characters are applies to like parts throughout the severalfigures of the draw- The apparatus is provided with an inclosing casinghaving a base portion 10,-which contains the feeding or deliverymechanism and a chamber serving as a bank or repository for the checksor coins through which the machine'is to operated, and upper portion 11,rising above the base for considerable distance, to furnish a receiverthe articles which are to be dispensed. These articles may be, forexample, folded drinking cups contained in square envelops A, which areof such transverse dimensions as to substantially fill the receiverhorizonportion thereof,

tally, but of comparativelyslight thickness,

so that a considerable number may be stored At the bottom of thereceiver,

Within it. separating it from the chamber ,in'the base portion, is ahorizontal plate 12in which is an opening having side portions 13, 13and an intermediate portion 13Kof less Width than the-side portions.Through this opening thefeed mechanism operates. 11 11 the front of thecasing just above the sur '7 throat of some length through Which thepackages are delivered.

face of the plate1-2 is a slot 14 providing a Situated in proximity tothe plate-opening are guide members, which may be conveniently in vtheform of rods, of which two pairs 15, 15 eX- tend across the portions 13,13 of the opening-wall, .while a third pair 16, spans the portion 13(Fig. 6). These extend in the direction of the delivery-slotbut are in aplane below and parallel to it.

Upon the guide-rods 16 slides a carrier 17 having pivoted upon it, bymeans of a trans versesha'l't 1.8, two pivoted primary feeding membersor spurs 18, which may either occupy an erect position in contact withstoppins 19 and with their points extending into the receiverintersecting the plane of the dclivery-opening, or which may be inclinedtoward andbelow the deiivcry-opening resting upon stop-pins 20. in thefirst instance they will engage, through the opening at 13*, thelowermost package in the receiver and upon forward movement will advanceit toward the delivery-opening, While in the sec end they will slideidly beneath such package,

Upon the rods 15, 15 are mounted carriers 91 1 having pivoted upon themates 22,

22, which norm ally occupy a vertical position at the inner end. of thedelivery-slot and are provided with cxtended -front contact facesfurnishing a closure for all but the central They tend at all times toassuniethis erect position through the ten sion of comparatively light srings .23, which draw the gates against t 1e vertical forward edges ofthe carriers 21 and at times in the operation of the apparatus they mayhe forced upwardly by the contact 01' depending arms 24 with pins '24rising from the late 12. y

T 1e carrier 17 receives motion from What is here shown ascoin-controlled mechanism:

i B, which will be later described, while it causes the travel of thecarriers 21 through gearing, which may consist of rack-teeth 25 and 26projecting from the adjacent sides of the carriers 17 and 2].,respectively, and lyingin different horizontal plane's, these havingmeshing with them pairs of pinions 27, 27 of different diameters, theupper pinion of each pair, cooperating with the racks 25, being smaller.'lhese pinions are rotatable about shafts 28 secured to bars 29extending across the opening 13-13. Considering the size of the pinionsand noting that the racks with which they cooperate lie up n theiropposite sides, it will be evident that the carriers 21 will be moved inthe opposite direction to that in which the carrier 17 travels and at agreater speed.

Secured to the inner wall of the base portion 10 of the casing, by aflan e 31, is a short sleeve 32 in which is rotatably mounted anactuating member 33, including a crank 34 fixed to the member 33 outsidethe casing and being adapted for manual operation. The throw of thecrank is limited by. an extension of the sleeve outside the casing, onesto -face 35 cooperating therewith in its norme. or idle position, andan opposite face 36 determining the extreme forward travel duringdelivery. A spring 37 is preferably'attached to the actuating member andto the sleeve 32, it lying within an annular recess within the formerand exerting its tension to force the crank against the stop-face 35.

The inner end 39 of the actuating member is partially cylindrical,extending circumferentially through somewhat less than 270, and thisfurnishes a bearing for one end of a shaft 41, the 0 posite end ofwhich. is jour naled in the we 1 of the casing. The portion of the shaftwithin the member at 39 is pro Vided with two intersecting slots 42, 42sym- ,metrically arranged at angles of 00 with one another, the relationoftlie elements being suchthat when the crank is in contact with theface two of the ends of these slots will be just outside or clear of theends of the partially cylindrical portion 39, as most clearly appears inFig. 3 of the drawings. Fixed to the shaft below the portion 13 ol' theopening in the bottom of the receiveri a four-armed cam or contactmember 43, each arm during its revolution being adapted to contact witha pi'ojection44 depending from the carrier 17, and then to' clear saidprojection leaving a space through which it may return to cooperate withthe succeeding arm of the cam. Extending from the end of the actuatingmember is an arm 4.5 having a linger 46 lying just in front of theGttl'l'lCl-Iii'fljection 44. The shaft 41, adjacent to the walloi' thecasing in which it is journaled, has fixed to it a ratchet-wheel 46which is engaged by a pawl 46* pivoted upon the easing. This limits therotation of the shaft to one direction, and also retains the shaftslotsin their proper relation to the actuating member and other elements ofthe apparatus. v

In the front of the base portion. 10 of the casing is a slot 47 whichwill just admit a check or coin of the size by which it is desired theapparatus shall be operated. From the slot a chute 48 is inclineddownwardly toward the actuating member and cooperating end of the shaft,it terminating in proximity to the former and opposite one of the slots42 in the latter in its normal position. From the underside of the innerextremity of the chute a guardineinber 49 encircles the actuating membertoa point nearly op osite the edge of the second slot 42, the owerextremity of which is left open. It should be observed that the normal.relation of the coincontrolled mechanism to this chute and guard, and ofthe cam 48 to the carrier-projection, is positively maintained, theposition of the actuating member being fixed by the contact of thestop-face 35 with the crank, and that of the shaft and cam by theengagement of the ratchet and pawl.

The package-receiver being supplied with the articles to be dispensed,when a coin Got the proper denomination or check of the correct size isintroduced into the slot 47, it

slides down the chute and enters that slot 42 has seated itself in theslot with its lowermostcdge in contact with the encircling wall of theactuating member, its upper edge projects beyond the slot into the pathof the end of said actuating member. Therefore, when the crank is turnedfrom against the stop-face 35, in the direction indicated by the arrowin Fig. 1, the actuating member striking the coin will be locked to theshaft, causing these elements to rotate as a unit. This brin s one ofthe cam-arms, which is lying direct y behind the projection 44 of thecarrier 1-7, against said projection advancing it in the direction ofthe delivery-opening, while the finger 46, which is fixed to theactuating member, moves in front of said projection. At the end of theprevious operation of the apparatus the spurs of the carrier 17 wereerected by contact of their portions below the pivots with thestop-faces 50 on the )late 12 or other relatively fixed portions of theapparatus into ei'igagcment with the bottom package in the receiver, andconsequently upon the forward travel this package is slid beneath thatnext above it toward the delivery opening. The movement of its com- 1 rpanions in the same direction is prevented by ceases 4), the travel oftheir carrier is communicated to the carriers 21 but in the reversedirection, these moving rearwardly and withdrawing the gates from thedelivery-opening, the latter as soon as they pass out of contact withthe wall of the casing being forced into an inclined position by thepackage and slid .ing beneath it without appreciable resistance.

Tins primary feeding movement continues until the parts have assumed theposition illustrated in Fig. 5, at which time the actuating crank willhave been stopped by engagement with the sleeve-face 36. hi ow thepackage is projected for a short distaniie through the delivery-slot, sothat it may be, if desired, grasped by the operator of the machine andwithdrawn. In this case the pull upon the package tilts the spurs towardthe slot so that they no longer have any active engagement with saidpackage. If instead of thus withdrawing the package the user oftheapparatus releases the crank, it will be returned to its initialposition by the spring 37. The gates when they pass beyond the end ofthe package, in their rearwariil movement, erected by their springsandby contact with. the pins 24F", so that their upper edges lie at theback of the package being de livered and beneath the next package atpoints not very far from its center. This inward travel of the carriers21 and the gates is more rapid and of greater extent than that of thecarrier 17, to insure said gates wholly clearing the package beingoperated upon. The reverse rotation of the actuating memher, under theinfluence of the spring, brings the finger 46 against the p Faction l iof the carrier 17, the actuating member being new closing position.

permitted to move indcpi tly oi the shaft, since when the latter hadfinished its forward throw the slot containing the coin has rotatedthrough 96", so that said coin passes the guard 49 and falls from themechanism B into the bank below. Until the completion of the primaryfeed, the coin is positively retained. in the shaft-slotby the guard.The pressure of the finger 46 against the carrier-projection moves itrearwardly and through the gearing advances the gates, which, contactingwith the end of the par tially ejected package, continue its deliveryuntil they arrive at their normal or slot- T he gates thus act assecondary feeding members, moving alternately with and in the oppositedirection to the primary feeding members; All the elements have now beenrestored to their initial positions exceot the shaft il, which hasbrought the secont. coin-receiving slot 42 opposite the end of the chuteand the succeeding cam-arm into cooperation with the carrier projection.

in addition to their closure of the deliveryopening and their secondaryfeeding function, the gates also serve to support the stack of packagesabove that which 18 being delivered, for suppose that the user of the.apparatus, as first described vnthdrewthe package partially fed, re hlShold upon the crank. I The gates being withdrawn from the deliveryopening would leave this clear, so that with a hooked instrument asecond package might be extracted, were it not for the fact that thebaiance of the stack falling upon the tons of the erect gates is heldabove. the slot, and this support continues eifective until said gatesreach the delivery-openin As they new renderthe iliicit withdrawal ofthe package impossible, on account of their closing all but thecontracted central portion of the slot, the packages may safely fallinto the position shown in Fig. 3, where "they are engaged by the spursof the primary feed, ready for the next operation of the apps. ratus.

I claim:

1. A vending apparatus comprising a casing having a delivery-opening,means for mounted to travel within the casing, and

means for imparting a feeding movement to the gate, the gate in saidmovement passing beneath and being adapted toserve as a sup port for thearticles in the receiver.

4. The combination with an article-receiver provided with an opening, ofa memher for closing the opening, and means for.

moving the member from the opening into cooperation with the side of thearticle farthest removed from said opening.

' 5. The combination with a casing adapted to receive a stack ofarticles and being provided with an opening, of means for feeding thelowermost article of the stack through the opening, and means actingboth as a closure for the casing-opening and as a support for thearticles above that which is be ing fed.

6. The combination with a casing adapted to receive a stack of articlesand being provided with an. opening, of means for feeding the lowermostarticle of the stack through the o ening, and a closure for the openingmova le to the rear of the articles being thus fed.

7. The combination with a casing adapted to receive a stack of articlesand being provided with an opening, of means for feeding the opening,

across the opening,

the lowermost article of the stack through movable beneath the articlebeinghfed, and means for erecting the closure at t e rear of saidarticle.

8. A vending apparatus comprising an article-receiver, primary feedingmechanism for the articles, means'for alternately moving said primaryfeeding mechanism in 0 posite directions, secondary feeding mec anismforthe articles, and means for transmitting movement from the primary tothe.

secondary feeding mechanism.

9. A vending apparatus comprising an article-receiver, primary feedingmechanism for the" articles, secondary feeding-mechanism forfs'aidarticles, and means for transmittin movement from the primary to thesecondary feeding mechanism in a reverse direction.

10. A vending apparatus comprising an article-receiver, primary feedingmechanism for thearticles, secondary feeding mechanism for saidarticles, and means for transmittin movement from the primary to thesecon ary feeding mechanism in a reverse direct'ion and'at an increasedspeed.

11. A dispensing apparatus comprising a package-receiver provided at itsbottom with an opening, a plurality of carriers movable across the openng, package-engaging members mounted upon the carriers, teeth proatilting closure for the opening ceases jecting from the carriers, andpinions meshmg wit the t 14. A dispensing apparatus comprising apackage=receiver provided at its bottom with an opening, a plurality ofcarriers movable across the" opening, package-engaging members mountedupon the carriers, a rack upon each carrier, a shaft situated betweenthe carriers, and inions of different diameters upon the shaft andmeshing with the racks of adjacent carriers,

15. The combination with a package-receiver, of feeding mechanism forthe packages, mechanism, and means whereby movement of the actuatingmember effects a portion of the delivery of a package and a reversemovement completes said delivery.

16. The combination with a package-receiver, of feeding mechanism forthe packages, an actuating member the feeding mechanism manuallymovablein one direction, a s ring for moving the actuating member in t 1eopposite direction, and means whereby the manual movement of theactuating member effects a portion of the delivery of the package andthe movement under influence of the spring completes said delivery.

17. A dispensing apparatuscomprising a package-receiver provl anopening, a carrier movable across the opening, a feedlng member pivotedupon the carrier, an actuating member adapted for manual operation, acontact member which may be moved by.the actuating member to cause thetravel of the carrier, said actuating member being also movableindependently of the contact member, and a member fixed to the actuatingmember and cooperating with the carrier to cause reverse movement.

Signed at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of M assachusetts,this 13th day of March, 190$).

HARRY J. POTTER. Witnesses:

SYLvANUs H. COBB, CHARLES A. GRANT.

an actuating member for the feeding ed at its bottom with

